Still on track!

I haven't had a cigarette in over a month now.

I do think about it... a few times a day. But the desire is much less. I've been with friends who are casual smokers. Fortunately, they weren't smoking at the time. Otherwise, I might have asked for one!

15 Days

well, it's been just over 2 weeks without a cigarette.

i still have the desire at certain trigger times during the day... mostly during the workday. so fortunately, it's not a constant urge.

7 Days

The last time I had a cigarette was April 26, 2008. It was just after dinner.

I hadn't been feeling well for the entire week before hand. And I was thinking that smoking was making me feel worse. Well, on April 27, I really felt awful. So I just stayed in for 2 days and didn't smoke at all. On Tuesday, I found out that I had Strep throat! So (along with the antibiotics), I decided to continue not smoking.

Well, it's been 7 days now.

There are some tough times. But when those moments pass, I'm fine until the next moment.

Hopefully, I can keep it up!!!

Work...!

Well, I thought, perhaps, that I could have my last cigarette on Saturday night before dinner. I didn't really crave one after dinner. On Sunday, I had some thoughts. But not nearly strong enough to want to have one. On Monday, I thought about it on my way into work. Walk to subway -- fine. Walk from subway to office -- fine. Around 9:30am, I thought about it. Thought about it again... and again. By 10:30am, I caved in and bought a pack.

Argh!

Happy 2008

January 1, 2008! Wow... 2007 passed so quickly. Each year passes faster and faster. But don't most people say that? I have a theory... the brain slows so that time appears to be going faster.

This may be my time to finally quit smoking. Well, that's what I've been thinking over the past month. Maybe I am in that right state of mind to do so.

If not, maybe I'll ramble about other things...

Where has the time gone?

Happy Presidents Day!

Wow. It's been almost a year since I first tried to kick the habit!! I didn't realize it until just now when I signed onto this blog. The first post was in March 2005! Where has this year gone?!?

Well, it's time to try again. It's been pretty cold outside and it's not that pleasant to step outside for a smoke. Cutting back on Roxy Saturday nights ought to help!

I had 2 cigarettes today. The last one was at about 4pm. The pack was finished! I bought Commit again to help me through this.

So, wish me luck! I hope the work stress levels are tolerable and that I don't run out and buy a pack of cigarettes.

-Phil

Baby steps

I've decided to cut back on the cigarettes before stopping completely. I had been smoking about 1/2 pack a day. That's about 10 on the average. I smoked 6 on Tuesday and 7 yesterday. I haven't been feeling like finishing them either. That's another strategy... not finishing them all the time. We shall see...

It's Fall!

It's Fall. I have a bit of a cold. I'm thinking that it's time to pick this up again. I'm not sure cold turkey will work for me. Cutting back slowly, perhaps? I'll give it some thought today.

Smoke Gets in THEIR Eyes!

Since I will be deferring my smoking cessation program for a bit, I have decided to expand the scope of this blog. But I wanted my blog's title to continuing being appropriate for any future entries. Up until now, I had been using "smoke" in its most literal sense. If I were to use "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" as a metaphor, I could expand this to many other areas.

A conversation with a coworker, "George", earlier this week comes to mind. I discovered that "George" is a Christian. He said that he is a Republican because he shares their values. He believes abortion should be illegal and homosexuality is wrong (BTW, he knows I'm gay.) He remarked that Liberals who are pro-choice are forcing abortion rights ON HIM! How crazy is that? I asked, "How could a woman somewhere in middle America having an abortion affect you? If the Conseratives prohibit abortions, they are directly forcing their opinion upon any woman who chooses to have an abortion." He stood by his opinion, blinded by the words of his religion.

Afterwards, I reflected on this conversation. "George" is by no means a fanatic. So, if the average Conservative thinks this way, I believe Liberals are fighting a losing battle. Nothing will ever change Conservative minds if religion is used to support their viewpoint. Nothing. And that's scary. These people don't see that they are using the same tactics as those religious zealots who pervert their dogma for the good of their cause.

Well, we can't change their minds. But we can bring true issues to the forefront, for example:

1. Are Iran and North Korea bigger threats than Iraq?
2. Our president lied to get us into Iraq. Why isn't this a bigger issue?
3. Is the US any safer against terrorism?
4. Should we be scared that our President wants to fight for the freedom of other countries, yet we are losing our own freedom of speech?
5. Healthcare is expensive and many people still lack coverage. What is being planned to address this?
6. Why has this Adminstration not reacted to high fuel prices?

Does this make sense? Should we be scared? Will my idea work? Let me know and spread the word!

-Phil

Defer to the Fall

Now that the weather is nice, I am going to defer my smoking cessation program to the Fall. It will be too difficult to quit in the Pines.

-Phil

Thursday...?

hmm...

OK... Well, maybe Tuesday

Didn't start today. I'll start tomorrow. As Scarlett said, "Tomorrow is another day."

Shame on Me!

Well, I fell off the wagon this weekend. I had two cigarettes on Friday! And several on Saturday. You see, Shawn and I went to Roxy and that environment is not conducive for quitting. It's nice to step outside the club and chat with people. WILL POWER!!!! Since I smoked on Saturday, I had a few today. Let me see... I had 4 1/2.

I'll start this again on Monday.

I have to say... I am torn. I do enjoy smoking. Closing my eyes and taking a deep inhale. Relaxing, yes! ...especially now that the weather is getting warmer. But after not smoking for a few days, I did feel better. Less phlegm in the morning already. Well... on Wed and Thu. Also, I found that when I didn't smoke, I had the munchies. Definitely an oral thing.

When I wasn't smoking, I did find myself getting irritated at people. Fortunately, I didn't snap at anyone... or I didn't think I did? But I found myself catching myself. I just have to get over that hump of not smoking for a week. The first week is the most difficult I hear.

Off to bed. Tomorrow is a second start!

Day 3, Well...

The day went pretty well. Didn't have a strong urge to smoke and took Commit. When I went out to pick up lunch, I didn't have a strong urge... this would have been one of the times I commonly had a cigarette.

But when it was close to quitting time, I got pulled into a problem at work. I couldn't hold out. I bummed a cigarette from a coworker and went outside. Oh well... on the bright side, I didn't have any more!

Ack!

I gave in. Work sucks!

Day 2 Completed

Day 2 is just about over. Well, actually, it's day 2 1/2! I actually started this on Monday morning!

Anyway, this was my first work day without a cigarette. Boy, was it tough. My previous two posts were from my cell phone! I really think that stress is the #1 cause for me to smoke! I caught myself thinking of having a cigarette in the middle of meetings. I had to pop a piece of Commit. Yes, I'm taking the small dosage... about 1/4 of a pill. I keep the bag of them with me.

Let's see how tomorrow goes. It's a 2 day work week for me. I have Good Friday off.

Whew!

Commit helped

Bleah

Ugh! I'd love a cigarette right now!

Day 1 Completed

Well, I got through Day #1. I tried one of the small pieces of Commit that I cut up. I could tolerate it longer and it didn't make me feel like throwing up. I spit it out after about 10 mins though.

Shawn and I met the kitchen designer to review the latest drawings. Sitting there, I really felt like having a cigarette. But I held my ground!

Afterwards, we had dinner at Vice-Versa and chatted with Jerry. I had one drink. I know it's a no-no, but I tried a different spirit... rum instead of my typical vodka. Didn't really make me feel like having a smoke.

Today will be the first challenge. It'll be a normal work day... normal schedule... This is where it'll be more difficult to break the habit.

"Commit"

Well, I tried my first Commit. I had eaten about 45 min ago, but the instructions said wait 15 min. So, I did. After about 5 mins, I had to spit it out. It made me feel like losing my breakfast! Eek!

I logged into the Commit site and filled out the Dependency Quiz. The results stated, "...you are slightly dependent on cigarettes. You may benefit from individualized support programs that will help you break the mental aspects of your smoking habit, in addition to the physical aspects. Don't forget, quitting is going to take a serious commitment from you as well." Maybe I don't need Commit? Maybe I should start at Step 2? Maybe I should just take 1/2 or a 1/4 of a lozenge? Hmm....?